* Chais, Kyle : Nameless
(Gallery 978-1-4391-8725-8, $15, 344pp, trade paperback, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jan 2012

Fantasy novel, the author’s first novel, concerning Nameless entities, fallen angels, who watch over humanity.
• This is the debut novel of the 20-year-old author, written when he was just 16.
• The publisher’s site as this description with a chapter one excerpt.
• Amazon also has a text excerpt, and a “Look Inside” preview.
• The parent publisher’s site has this author profile and Q&A.
• The Publishers Weekly review is cautious: “Written when the author was 16, the book shows evidence of a potentially impressive imagination, but no polish or depth.”

(Mon 26 Dec 2011)
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* Cox, James : U.R.B.
(CreateSpace 978-1456555825, $9.99, 238pp, trade paperback, October 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Mon 10 Oct 2011

SF thriller set in 2038 about an investigation into a renegade feminist organization dedicated to overthrowing the sexploitation industry.
• The author’s site has this page with an excerpt.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function also provides an excerpt.

(Mon 9 Jan 2012)
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* Francis, Samuel : The Psychological Fictions of J.G. Ballard
(Continuum 978-1441161956, $110, 208pp, nf, December 2011)
• Nominal Publication Date: Thu 5 Jan 2012

Nonfiction study of the “psychology and the psychological in J.G. Ballard’s fiction”.
• The publisher’s site has this description, with a table of contents indicating notes, a bibliography, and an index.

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* Jama-Everett, Ayize : The Liminal People
(Small Beer Press 978-193152033-1, $16, 190pp, trade paperback, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jan 2012

Fantasy novel, the author’s first novel, about a man who can heal, or hurt, with his touch.
• The Small Beer Press site has this description with blurbs from Maureen F. McHugh, Nalo Hopkinson, and others, plus a link to the first three chapters.
• Book site http://www.theliminalpeople.com/ has a plot summary, descriptions of characters, and a News blog.
• Amazon has several 4- and 5-star reader reviews.

(Fri 23 Dec 2011)
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+ Koonchung, Chan, translated by Michael S. Duke : The Fat Years
(Random House/Doubleday/Talese 978-0-385-53434-5, $26.95, 336pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jan 2012

SF novel about an entire year erased from Chinese history.
• The UK edition was published in July 2011.
• Amazon’s page has numerous quotes from reviews and a “Look Inside” function providing a preview.
• The publisher’s site has this description, comparing it to Brave New World, and noting that this “controversial and politically charged novel” was “banned in China”, with links to reviews.
• The Publishers Weekly review advises, “Part political thriller, part dystopian nightmare, the journey through 20th-century Chinese history bears misleading comparisons to Brave New World, since these characters are little more than mouthpieces for discussions about politics. As a result, this first English translation of Koonchung’s fiction, an underground sensation in China, feels flat, a quality exacerbated by the novel’s uneven pace and lengthy digressions into historical and political minutiae. However, Koonchung (founder of Hong Kong’s City Magazine) reveals the moral and political perils of contemporary Chinese life, and a better translation may allow this novel to flourish.”

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* Preston, Douglas, & Lincoln Child : Gideon’s Corpse
(Grand Central 978-0446564373, $26.99, 368pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jan 2012
• Gideon Crew #2

SF thriller, sequel to Gideon’s Sword (2011), about a nuclear scientist who goes mad and takes a family hostage.
• The publisher’s site has this description with an OpenBook preview function.
• The Publishers Weekly review calls it “unremarkable”.

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* Revis, Beth : A Million Suns
(Penguin/Razorbill 978-1595143983, $17.99, 400pp, hardcover, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Tue 10 Jan 2012
• Across the Universe #2

Young adult SF novel, sequel to the the author’s first novel Across the Universe (2011), about the starship Godspeed sent to colonize a new world on a 300-year mission.
• The publisher’s site has this description.
• The author’s site has this description with links to the official series site with diagrams of the ship, and a link to a Facebook page with a link to an excerpt.

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* Saler, Michael : As If: Modern Enchantment and the Literary PreHistory of Virtual Reality
(Oxford University Press 978-0195343175, $27.95, 304pp, trade paperback, January 2012)
• Nominal Publication Date: Mon 9 Jan 2012

Nonfiction cultural history tracing the idea of virtual reality back to Sherlock Holmes, Lovecraft, and Tolkien.
• The publisher’s site has this description with blurbs from Kim Stanley Robinson and others.
• Amazon’s “Look Inside” function provides the table of contents and an excerpt.

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